Elite Trophy champ Sabalenka won't stop carrying children

This spring, Tommy Paul started the trend among tennis players of "holding things." But, in Asia this fall, Aryna Sabalenka's taken it to the next level: holding children.

Here she is doing it at the Zhengzhou Open:

And, at the WTA Elite Trophy final, in Zhuhai, instead of being walked onto the court by her escort, Sabalenka chose to carry her:

It didn't end there, though. Sabalenka won the Elite Trophy—the second-tier year-end finals—by beating top seed Kiki Bertens, 6-4, 6-2. When she collected her trophy, the child made another appearance:

Sabalenka both began and ended her 2019 singles season with championships in China—she opened the year by winning the International-level Shenzhen Open. With the addition of her two titles at the Premier 5 Wuhan Open, Sabalenka has won four Chinese tournaments in two years, 80 percent of the 21-year-old's career wins.

In doubles, she and Elise Mertens are the No. 1 seeds in the WTA Finals, in Shenzhen. They start their campaign versus Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Demi Schuurs.